Week #33 (Aug 12-18, 2019)

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Week #33 (Aug 12-18, 2019) - The Little Things Pt.2 (The Bad)

Last week, I talked about the importance of not underestimating the little wins, as each one incrementally moves the needle forward and serves to bolster the overall picture. I hope you found it reassuring. Whereas last weeks’s post was to serve as an encouragement, today’s is to serve as a warning. I’d be remiss to not discuss the other side of not underestimating the “little” things because much like the little wins adds up, so do the little sins. Like every other human who has walked the face of the earth, my mind has a near limitless ability to rationalize. Take for example the fact that I’m on a diet & exercise regime. While I am pretty regulated, last weekend was pretty much a full fledged assault on my calorie count. Between a wedding (complete with a 3 course meal, plus dessert, PLUS a late night burger & fries table), and a family function, the weekend was a total munchfest. I told myself “Hey! It’s not everyday one of your closest friends gets married, so eat up!” or “C’mon! Family celebrations are a great occasion. You’ll make up for it later!” So by Monday, although I didn’t check the weight scale, I did notice I was more lethargic and sluggish than I typically am. Was I wrong for making those exceptions to my regime, given the circumstances? I’ll let you decide. At any rate, while this scenario was pretty innocuous, it does illustrate the penchant we for infinite rationalization, particularly as it relates to things we find pleasurable. And in there lies great danger. Someone once asked me, “How do you get a frog to commit suicide?” Naturally, I asked how. The person said, you put the frog in a pot of cool water. After a few minutes, put that pot on the stove but only at a low temperature. After some time, slightly increase the heat, then wait a little more. Repeat this process a few times, and before you know it, the frog will voluntarily “sleep” in its warm and “cozy” environment. It won’t even put up a fight. You get the picture? The frog acclimatizes to the water at each new stage, unbeknownst to it that the environment is getting increasingly hostile and will eventually claim its life. And such is the nature of our little sins. We allow ourselves a little dalliance with a minor evil, until that becomes the new norm. And depending on what our sin of choice is, in due time, it could consume us. I know some personal friends who’s marriages have come to an end on account of something that started off as a “little” thing. I see my tendency to minimize my sins in my personal journey to walk closely with God. I’ve seen how “little” things I did or took for granted with my wife, has resulted in larger arguments later on. And I had no one else to blame but myself. I’ve seen a close friend lose business and friendships because of the “little” mistakes they failed to learn. And observing the broader culture, I see very much the same pattern of downplaying the impact of “little” compromises we make. I find it simultaneously sad and comical when some major recording artists make comments like “I never sold my soul to achieve all this success”. Meanwhile, the core of their message and content glorifies everything contrary to healthy life values. One popular female celebrity once said she believes girls shouldn’t feel like they have to show their bodies in order to feel significant, or to achieve success. The glaring irony is this celebrity’s brand over the last decade has been deeply anchored in the glorification of elicit sex and in the flaunting of her body, all of which has made her a millionaire many times over.One of the major problems with the modern idea of “selling one’s soul” is that, it is too often portrayed as this one earth-shifting moment where there’s a contract in front of you, demanding you denounce your values in exchange for earthly gain. We’ve all watched the scene. A silver-tongued antagonist personifying Satan, dangles the earth’s pleasures in front of the protagonist in exchange for their soul. This is a fairy tale. The offer to sell one’s soul rarely ever comes in such glorious fashion. In reality, it is offered in little bite size increments. Make this little compromise, but here’s why it’s good to make this compromise now as opposed to before. A little further in the future, do this other thing. And so on, and so forth. So for some of these celebrities who believe they haven’t sold their soul, the opposite is in fact true. They’ve gotten their reward but have in exchange sacrificed the values that lay at the foundation of preserving one’s soul. When we hear of major scandals or the demise of people (i.e. Weinstein, Epstein, Kelly), rarely did it come about as a result of one fatal decision. It is more than not the culmination of a long road filled with a million little compromises and ignored warnings.PHEW! This is an intense post and I recognize it might rub many the wrong way. But please remember that I’m not so much pointing the finger at “you” or “them”, as I am sounding a warning we all (myself included) must heed. We all to some degree or another struggle with habits, and patterns of behaviour that we know to be counterproductive. One might have a seemingly docile vice of watching too much TV/Netflix, while another might engage in what we consider the more serious vices. Regardless of where you find yourself, an important question to ask is this; “Have I settled on my current state of affairs? Have I embraced my darling sins, as it were? Or am I still actively waging war against them BELIEVING victory is possible?” Your answer to that question, is the litmus test as to whether you’re in a healthy place or headed for an inevitable demise. Actively waging war against our habits takes on many forms (which would require its own entire post), but I’ll summarize my views here. Fighting our sins starts in the heart. We have misplaced views about things, ourselves and the world at large. I believe the gospel of Jesus Christ attacks this head on as a matter of first importance. It speaks to the lies we believe underneath the specific “sins”. The gospel goes beyond the symptom to the root cause. Once this uncomfortable truth is confronted and accepted, then true healing begins. The heart continues to be refined by God and in some cases, one might need to combine that with things like; accountability, professional help or therapy, setting boundaries, etc. At the end of the day, perfection isn't a requirement. Just a humble and steady willingness to persevere in the battle against the "little" sins.Someone might say, “Calm down! I don’t have deadly vices!” To them I say, all who do, didn’t at some point. I’ll also add; even seemingly innocent vices like procrastination, laziness, white lies, gossip etc., can (and probably will) have far reaching implications in your career, relationships, and ultimately life.All in all, beware of “…the little foxes, that spoil the vine”.Until next week, 

#KnowItsRealP.S. Have you been letting your "little" sins slide or are you still waging war against them?

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